Gaza Officials: Israeli Attack on Shelters Kills 20

An Israeli airstrike in northern Gaza late Monday killed at least 20 people, including women and children, according to Palestinian authorities.

The attack targeted a house in Beit Lahiya where several displaced families had sought refuge, said Hossam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, who received the victims.

The Israeli military said it targeted an arms cache used by militants and claimed that “numerous steps were taken to reduce the risk of harm to civilians.”

Gaza’s Health Ministry later said eight women and six children were among those killed.

How many people died in Gaza?

Additional Israeli attacks early Tuesday claimed 10 more lives, health officials said.

According to the Health Ministry’s emergency services, a strike hit a house in the Tufah neighborhood of Gaza City, killing two children and their parents.

Two other children were injured, it was said.

An Israeli airstrike hit a tent in downtown Zuweida where a displaced family was taking shelter, killing four people, including a mother and her two children, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the nearby town of Deir al-Balah.

Another attack hit a house in Deir al-Balah, killing two people, the hospital said. A Associated Press The journalist confirmed the number of bodies in the hospital morgue.

The Israeli military says it does not target civilians indiscriminately.

They say their operations focus on militants they say are entrenched in civilian areas. The Israeli military rarely comments on individual attacks.

It has been just over a year since Hamas led the deadliest Palestinian militant attack in Israel’s history, killing about 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostage.

Nearly 100 people remain captive, with fewer than 70 believed to be alive. Israel then launched its military operation in the Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian Health Ministry reported last week that the death toll from Israeli military operations during Gaza’s year-long conflict had exceeded 43,000, with more than half of the victims being women and children.

Israel’s offensive in the northern Gaza Strip

Israel’s offensive in the northern Gaza region began after the military accused Hamas of trying to regroup in the area.

The ongoing operation has led to the complete evacuation of several northern cities, including Beit Hanoun and the Jabaliya refugee camp.

The Israeli government has allowed only minimal humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, a restriction that drew criticism from the Biden administration, warning that a continued blockade could affect U.S. military aid.

As fighting intensifies, tens of thousands of Palestinians are fleeing Gaza City.

Almost 90 percent of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been displaced, often multiple times.

Medical facilities in the region are largely inaccessible due to the ongoing conflict and emergency services have been suspended.

Kamal Adwan Hospital was stormed by Israeli forces last month amid claims by Palestinian officials that militants had sought refuge there.

This article contains reporting from The Associated Press